The very worst aspect of the reignited Jeffrey Epstein saga, followed closely by the resurgence of Russiagate, is that we’d finally gotten the best version of President Donald Trump. The historically successful Iran strikes and passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act marked the emergence of a self-actualized president. The brash and bawdy showman of the 1980s had transformed into an historic figure before our eyes, and his opposition had fallen to pieces. Perhaps he would never reach the historical significance of Teddy Roosevelt or Harry Truman. But LBJ? Woodrow Wilson? You could see it if you squinted.
Today, the Trump who reshaped the Middle East without sacrificing a single American soldier and steered historic legislation through a fractious Congress with razor-thin majorities feels like a distant memory — or maybe a dream?
The Trump Circus is back in full swing, replete with AI generated arrest videos of political rivals and secondary fixations turned into national flashpoints, such as reopening Alcatraz and renaming sports teams.
Is this what the next 3-and-a-half years hold? For the sake of the country, I hope not.
The circus reemerged not by chance, but as a smokescreen for Trump’s past follies. For years, he and allies, including FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino, stoked conspiracies about a “globalist” pedophile ring tied to Democrats, especially Bill Clinton. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s “Epstein Files: Phase 1” stunt at the White House teased more revelations, while Vice President JD Vance urged releasing the “Epstein list” on Theo Von’s podcast only one month ago.
Yet, in early July, an FBI memo declared no “incriminating client list” existed, prompting Trump to dismiss the saga as the “Jeffrey Epstein Hoax.” Patel and Bongino swore they had nothing else to show. Bondi lashed out at the media for asking questions. Vance stayed conspicuously quiet. The base wasn’t satisfied.
Then the Wall Street Journal dropped a bomb: they’d obtained a birthday card written by Trump to Epstein with the wish that “every day be another wonderful secret.” A week later, the paper reported that Bondi had informed Trump in May that his name appeared multiple times in the Epstein files. So much for “nothing to see here.”
Almost immediately, the circus recommenced. Trump shared an AI generated video of Obama being carried away by the FBI to the tune of “YMCA” for his role in leading the Russia collusion hoax of 2016. Next came an image shared by the official White House X account depicting Trump in a heroic pose amid a backdrop of fireworks, flags, and soaring bald eagles with the caption, “I was the hunted — now I’m the hunter. They came after the wrong man.”
To be sure, the Obama teams’s role in that scheme appears very real and potentially criminal. But the video’s timing, paired with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s document dump, screams emergency narrative control, cheapening the hunt for truth while spotlighting Trump’s own Epstein-soiled hands.
More than distracting from incredible second term achievements, the circus extends a lifeline to the otherwise dead Democratic Party. The current face of Trump’s opposition, Zohran Mamdani, is a 33 year old communist who wants to abolish the police, prisons, and private health care. The president should be pounding the Democrats into dust right now. But instead, his antics sink his approvals to their level. Thursday’s Gallup poll places the president at 37%, within single digits of the Democrats’ approval rating according to CNN earlier this week.
BONDI TOLD TRUMP IN MAY THAT HIS NAME WAS IN THE EPSTEIN FILES
For the Republican Party’s sake, but more importantly for the nation’s, let’s hope Trump regains his early summer form.
Until then, step right up, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, and prepare to be amazed.